Farm gate



Feb. 14, 1967 R. P. SEUNTJENS FARM GATE Filed Fb. 4, 1965 United States Patent 3,303,613 FARM GATE Ronald P. Seuntjens, Danbury, Iowa 51019 Filed Feb. 4, 1965, Ser. No. 430,305 1 Claim. (Cl. 49-131) My invention relates to a farm gate.

An object of my invention is to provide a farm gate which can be readily opened by a vehicle of any type which approaches the gate and whereby the gate will then be forced directly to a horizontal position by means of the vehicle, and whereby the gate will then slowly travel back to its normal vertical position.

A further object of my invention is to provide an automatic latching and unlatching arrangement, and to further provide an arrangement which can be pivoted about a vertical axis as in normal practice.

A further object of my invention is to provide a gate which can be readily operated from either side.

With these and other objects in view, my invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of my device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a forward elevation of the gate,

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the lines 33 of FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken through a portion of the latch mechanism,

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged detail view of one end of the gate,

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the lines 6-6 of FIGURE 5,

FIGURE 7 is a detail showing a portion of the gate in its horizontal position, and

FIGURE 8 is a sectional detail of the dash-pot arrangement.

My invention contemplates the provision of a farm gate or other type gate which will pivot about a lower horizontal axis when a car or vehicle is driven against the same and whereby it will not then be necessary to open the gate by getting out of the vehicle, and my invention further contemplates a provision of the gate being readily operable in this way and yet being normally safe against this opening action occasioned by stock animals.

In describing my invention 1 have used the character 10 to designate a vertically positioned hollow pipe or tube which can be closed over as at 11, the character 12 indicating a partition wall which rotatably receives a pulley member 13 having the expanded portion 14, and in which is journalled the pulley 15.

Passing over the pulley 15 is the cable 16 which is attached at 17 to a strong helical spring 18 which can be attached as at 19 at the lower end of the pipe or tube 10.

The character 20 indicates a portion cut out of the pipe 10, and receiving the pipe 10 is a collar 21 having the threaded openings 22 adapted to thread-ably receive the wing nut 23.

Attached to the collar 21 is the horizontally positioned tube 240 in which is received the end of the tube 24, and attached to the tube 24 and 25 are the tubes 26. Attached across the top of the members 26 is -a transverse pipe or tube 27, and attached between the members 24 and 27 are the channel members 28. The character 29 indicates further transverse tubes or pipes passing through the channels 28, and being attached to the members 26. Attached to the pipe 10 at 30 is a helical spring 31 which is attached at 32 to the bracket 33 which is secured to the members 21 and 24, and pivotally attached -at 34 to the member 33 is dash-pot member including the hydraulic cylinder 35, the piston rod 36, and the piston 37, the piston 37 including an enlarged opening at 38 communicating with the flap valve 39, the piston 37 also including the small opening 40. The

piston rod 36 is pivotally attached as at 41 to the gate' member 26 and the cable 16 is secured at 42 to the member 26 also.

Pivotally mounted in the various members 27, 29, and 24 is a vertical rod 43 to which are secured the horizontal bars 44 which extend into the vertical bars 45, the character 46 indicating a torsion spring adapted to normally maintain the bars 45 in the position shown in FIGURE 2.

The character 47 indicates a further hollow pipe to which is attached at 48 the further spring 49 which is attached at 50 to the member 51, the character 52 indicating further threaded openings with which the wing nut 53 is engaged, and the character 54 indicates a pair of vertically spaced flanges attached to the member 51, and passing through the flanges 54 are the horizontally spaced bolts 55.

Attached to the post 47 is the upper collar or bracket 56 which includes the extending portion 57 which includes the indented opening at 58 for the reception of the latch member 59 which passes within the slot 60 in the other member 26, the member 59 being secured as at 61 to the rod 62 which is adapted to reciprocate as at 63 within the member 64, and the character 65 indicates a helical compression spring which receives the rod 62, the character 66 indicating a washer secured as at 69 to the rod 62, and attached at 67 to the rod 62 is a cable 68, which is secured as at 69a to the upper bar 44.

The cable 68 includes an open slot portion at 70, the character 71 indicating a manually operated rod which is attached to the bar 62.

The gate operates in the following manner.

The driver of the vehicle will drive direct-1y at the bar 45, and from either side when approaching the gate. This will cause the rod 43 to pivot which will draw the cable 68 and will cause the latch member 59 to be pulled out of the member 57, and as the driver continues the gate will be forced to the horizontal position as shown in FIG- URE 7, it being understood that the gate can be made of any type of rigid construction to withstand the pressure or weight of the vehicle. During the downward travel of the gate, the cable 16 will pull on the spring 18, and as soon as the vehicle leaves the gate, the tendency will be for this spring to return the gate to its normal vertical position. However it is essential that the gate return slowly so as not to cause a rapid and possibly harmful action, and in this case the oil within the cylinder 35 will be forced through the small opening 40 thereby providing a dash-pot principle, and the slow emission of the oil will cause the gate to travel backwardly to its vertical position at a relatively slow rate, and the latch 59 will travel over either sloping surface 72 until it is re-engaged within the slot 58 and thereby again held in fixed position.

It will be noted that the bars 45 will operate the rod 43 from either side, and it will be further noted that the cable 16 can operate from either side, it being noted from FIGURE 6 that the pulley 15 will swing or rotate with the cut out portion at 20 permitting the action at either side.

The springs 31 and 49 provide an important function in that they keep the lower member 24 oif of the ground surface and in a slightly suspended relation whereby this lower member will be protected from mud, ice, etc., and the wing nuts 23 can be placed in any of the openings 22 to adjustably fix the lower end of the arrangement as desired. In referring again to the dash-pot it will be noted that the flap valve 39 will freely open during the downward swing of the gate, the larger opening 38 permitting a rapid action.

In the event that it is desired to swing the gate about the post in the ordinary fashion, the member 71 is pushed manually toward the left which disengages the latch member 59 and the gate can then be opened by hand. When the gate is swung in this manner around the pipe 10, either one of the bolts 55 can be removed to allow the gate to swing in either direction,

The slot at 70 allows a stronger spring 46 to be used for the proper action, and yet allows the manual operation at 71 without requiring undue pressure or strength against the spring 46.

The cable 68 could be replaced by a rod if desired and it should be specifically understood that other modifications could be made without departing from the essential spirit of my invention, and it will now be noted that I have provided the advantages mentioned in the objects of my invention with further advantages being apparent.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangementof the parts of my invention without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claim any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim as my invention:

A farm gate comprising a pair of laterally spaced posts, a gate member secured between said posts, said gate member being adapted to rotate about a lower horizontal axis, spring means for returning said gate to vertical position after being rotated on said axis, a latch member secured to said gate, a latch socket attached to one of said posts, means for releasing said latch member from said socket incidental upon movement of a vehicle against said gate, said means including a framework, means for pivoting tical axis, means attached between said framework and said latch member for operating said latch member, said spring means including a spring received in and having one end secured to one of said posts, a pulley attached to said post, a cable passing over said pulley and being attached to said spring and said gate member, said pulley being rotatable about a vertical axis whereby said spring will operate to close said gate to vertical position, from either side thereof, brackets receiving said posts upon which said gate member is mounted, said brackets being slidably secured to said posts between an upper and a lower position, further springs attached between said posts and said brackets for resiliently holding said brackets in said upper position, a dash-pot member pivotally attached to one of said brackets and to said gate member to provide a slow return of said gate to vertical position, one of said brackets being rotatable about the vertical axis of the post upon which it is mounted so as to provide swinging of said gate about said post, and means for releasing the lower end of said gate from the otherv of said brackets.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 645,842 3/ 1900 Tennant 3979 1,132,821 3/1915 Adams et al. 39-81 1,499,120 6/1924 Nies 395 2,007,071 7/1935 Burns 39-5 2,024,063 12/ 1935 Roper 395 2,585,481 2/1952 Martin 39--55 X 2,713,737 7/1955 Hawkins 3922 X 3,089,267 5/1963 Wooden 395 FOREIGN PATENTS 297,120 8/ 1929 Great Britain.

said framework to said gate member on a normally ver- I HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

I D. L. TAYLOR, Assistant Examiner. 

